Finding a lender as a travel healthcare worker

[Allyson Mitchell]

Hey! My name is Ally and I am a traveling radiation therapist.  A huge reason why I decided to travel was so that I could make more income allowing me to invest in real estate. The income is great, however i’m realizing upon furthering my research that I am probably going to struggle to find a lender. The reason for this being that most lenders see travelers as unstable because we change jobs every 13 weeks, our income often varies, and we often have gaps in our employment between contracts to travel, be around family, ect. When in reality there is a desperate need for healthcare workers around the country and we could have a job tomorrow if we wanted. Any advice to finding a lender under these stipulations would be great. In addition to that, I am also concerned as to how big of a loan I can get, as travelers taxable income is significantly less than what they are actually making with stipends. For example $50,000 a year taxable with all my assignments, but  making $60,000 in stipends. So I’m assuming a lender would only take into account the $50,000 taxable and not the addition $60,000 I would have.  I also have a partner with a full time job and great credit score as well, so maybe my best option would be to include him and have him apply for the mortgage. However I prefer it to just be me as this is currently my goal of becoming financially free through real estate and not his at this time. I am a new to all this and my situation makes things a little more difficult so any recommendations or advice would be great! Thank you☺️

[Raymond J. Rodrigues]

@Allyson Mitchell, I just helped a travel nurse in a similar situation as you buy a home that was turned down by a few other lenders. What state are you looking to purchase your home in? 

[Robin Simon]

Quote from @Allyson Mitchell:

Hey! My name is Ally and I am a traveling radiation therapist.  A huge reason why I decided to travel was so that I could make more income allowing me to invest in real estate. The income is great, however i’m realizing upon furthering my research that I am probably going to struggle to find a lender. The reason for this being that most lenders see travelers as unstable because we change jobs every 13 weeks, our income often varies, and we often have gaps in our employment between contracts to travel, be around family, ect. When in reality there is a desperate need for healthcare workers around the country and we could have a job tomorrow if we wanted. Any advice to finding a lender under these stipulations would be great. In addition to that, I am also concerned as to how big of a loan I can get, as travelers taxable income is significantly less than what they are actually making with stipends. For example $50,000 a year taxable with all my assignments, but  making $60,000 in stipends. So I’m assuming a lender would only take into account the $50,000 taxable and not the addition $60,000 I would have.  I also have a partner with a full time job and great credit score as well, so maybe my best option would be to include him and have him apply for the mortgage. However I prefer it to just be me as this is currently my goal of becoming financially free through real estate and not his at this time. I am a new to all this and my situation makes things a little more difficult so any recommendations or advice would be great! Thank you☺️

 Look for a mortgage broker that specializes in "Non-QM" Mortgage Loans

[Benjamin Aaker]

You can do it as a traveller. You will need to convince your lender that you are likely to continue bringing that same level of income in the future. You should bring the lender your 'business plan' for your rad therapy business. Show them how you have made money doing this and how you plan for the times when you are in between jobs. Show them that this is expected in your line of work. This decision for them is all about risk of you not being able to pay back the mortgage. W2 jobs are somehow considered to be more stable than independent contractors. You need to show them otherwise in your case.

[Allyson Mitchell]

Quote from @Raymond J. Rodrigues:

@Allyson Mitchell, I just helped a travel nurse in a similar situation as you buy a home that was turned down by a few other lenders. What state are you looking to purchase your home in? 

The great thing is that I am open to a lot of different states, wherever I can benefit the most really! However I would prefer to stick to south and south east states for a warmer climate in the winter months. 

[John Burke]

Unfortunately, reimbursement for expenses (e.g., work related supplies, travel, meals and entertainment) are not considered wages as they are provided for offsetting a specific expense incurred while performing a service for the employer. 

[Colby Dorris]

Hi Allyson! As long as you have at least two years of stable or increasing income as a traveling radiation therapist, then we can use that income with a conventional loan. It can cause some extra documentation needs, but as long as your income has been stable or increasing over the last two years then we should be able to make the argument to make it happen.